Selina Matenga-Napa (born 17 October 1964) is a

Cook Islands The Cook Islands is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands whose total land area is approximately . The Cook Islands' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) covers of ocean. Avarua is its ...

politician and former member of the

Cook Islands Parliament The Parliament of the Cook Islands () is the legislature of the Cook Islands. Originally established under New Zealand administration, it became the national legislature upon independence in 1965. The Parliament consists of 24 members dir ...

. She is a member of the Cook Islands Democratic Party. She is the daughter of former MP Dr Teariki Matenga.

Early life and sporting career

Napa was born on

Mangaia Mangaia (traditionally known as A'ua'u Enua, which means ''terraced'') is the most southerly of the Cook Islands and the second largest, after Rarotonga. It is a roughly circular island, with an area of , from Rarotonga. Originally heavily popul ...

and educated at Titikaveka School and

Tereora College Tereora College is a secondary school in Nikao, Rarotonga, Cook Islands. It is the oldest secondary school in the Cook Islands and the national college of the Cook Islands for Year 9–13 students. The school was first established in 1895 by th ...

. She has a long involvement in

Netball Netball is a ball sport played on a rectangular court by two teams of seven players. The primary objective is to shoot a ball through the defender's goal ring while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own. It is one of a ...

, playing at a village level as a child before being part of the Cook Islands national netball team at the

1981 South Pacific Mini Games The 1981 South Pacific Mini Games were held at Honiara in the Solomon Islands from 8–16 July 1981. It was the first edition of the South Pacific Mini Games. Participating countries Fifteen Pacific nations participated in the Games: Sports Fiv ...

. She played for the Cook Islands throughout the 1980s and 1990s, including at the

1987 World Netball Championships The 1987 World Netball Championships was the seventh edition of the INF Netball World Cup held in Glasgow, Scotland. This quadrennial premier event in international netball featured 17 teams, and included the debut of Cook Islands. The format of ...

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, and the

1989 World Games The 1989 World Games (), commonly known as Karlsruhe 1989, were the third edition of the World Games, an international multi-sport event. This edition was held in Karlsruhe, West Germany. Titles 112 titles were awarded in 19 sports (5 invitatio ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. Eventually she rose to be team captain. She later played for and coached the Titikaveka Pearls, and was part of the selection panel for the

Cook Islands women's national cricket team The Cook Islands women's national cricket team represents the Cook Islands, an associated state of New Zealand, in international women's cricket. It is organised by the sport's governing body in the country, the Cook Islands Cricket Associati ...

Political career

Napa worked for the Business Trade and Investment board, and then as campaign manager for Titikaveka MP

Robert Wigmore Robert George Wigmore (8 September 1949 – 13 April 2012) was the leader of the Cook Islands Democratic Party from 2010 – 2012, and Deputy Prime Minister of the Cook Islands from 2009 to 2010. He served as a Minister in the Cabinets of Rob ...

for four election campaigns. She was later an administrator and spokesperson for the Democratic Party. Following Wigmore's death she was elected to Parliament in the 2012 Titikaveka by-election, which was also contested by her brother. In April 2013 she attended the inaugural Pacific Parliamentary Forum in

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. Napa was re-elected in the 2014 election. In 2015, she was appointed opposition spokesperson for Environment, Telecommunications, Tourism, and Youth and Sport. In 2016, she was part of the Cook Islands' delegation to the second Pacific Parliamentary Forum. She was re-elected again at the 2018 election. In December 2019 she was part of a protest by women MPs to permit the wearing of ei katu (floral crowns) in Parliament. In February 2020 she was appointed Democratic Party spokesperson for Health, Environment, Justice, and the Trade and Investment Board. She lost her seat in the

2022 Cook Islands general election The 2022 Cook Islands general election was held on 1 August 2022 to determine the composition of the 18th Parliament of the Cook Islands. A referendum on legalising medical cannabis was held on the same day. Background In the 2018 general e ...

Honours

Napa was awarded an MBE for services to sport, youth and the community in the

2007 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2007 were appointments made by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year cele ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Napa, Selina Living people 1964 births People from Mangaia Members of the Parliament of the Cook Islands Democratic Party (Cook Islands) politicians Cook Island women in politics 21st-century New Zealand women politicians 21st-century New Zealand politicians Cook Island netball players Members of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century New Zealand sportswomen